


It Was For The Best

by TheGuardian219



Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: Angst, Big Brother Mycroft, Brother Feels, Dysfunctional Family, Episode Fix-It: s04e03 The Final Problem, Episode: s04e03 The Final Problem, Family, Family Drama, Father-Son Relationship, Fault, Fix-It, Gen, Mother-Son Relationship, Mycroft Being a Good Brother, Mycroft Feels, Mycroft Has Issues, Poor Mycroft, Sherlock Being Considerate, Sherlock Being a Good Brother, Sibling Love, The Final Problem, Uncel Rudy is Wonderful, blame
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-10
Updated: 2017-02-10
Packaged: 2018-09-23 03:12:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9638483
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheGuardian219/pseuds/TheGuardian219
Summary: EDIT: It was for the best. It was always for the best, wasn't it? All of the choices he made, all of the lies he's told, everything he ever did; he did it because he believed that it was for the best. He did his absolute best to protect them all from the truth, but it wasn't enough.Rudi knows that despite all the power Mycroft has, he could never talk back nor defend himself from his parents. That's why he was going to barge down that office and give them a piece of his mind, because a person could only handle so much before the ice begins to crack.





	

**Author's Note:**

> There's a lot of stress in my life right now so I whipped this up during my vacant hours to let lose a little steam. I may or may not continue this, it still depends on thr inspiration and our schedule. Anyway, I hope you enjoy reading it. Don't be afraid to leave a comment below.  
> EDIT: I've edited some parts and hopefully fixed those pesky typos.

"Well Sherlock? You were always the grown-up?"

There was a brief silence. Mycroft felt like he was slapped in the face, Sherlock was about to speak when the telephone on the desk began ringing. Mummy whipped around and glared at the thing before turning her wild eyes at her son. "I thought we were not to be interrupted?"

Mycroft winced as he glared at the phone as well. _'Not exactly being saved by the bell.'_  
Sherlock observed as his brother picked up the phone. Mycroft cast a brief suspicious glance at them before speaking, deeming them trustworthy enough to hear the beginning of the conversation before he sent them out.

"Anthea. I thought I specifically ordered you not to bother me with anything within this hour barring the pre-"

Sherlock saw the the way Mycroft's eyes widen in surprise before narrowing.

"You can't be serious."

Mycroft pinched the bridge of his nose as mummy and daddy watch him.

"Where is he now- Anthea? Are you sti-"

Sherlock's eyes widened when his brother flinch and hold the telephone far from his ear, he could barely make out the voice on the other end but he recognized it. He smiled to himself, this would be interesting. And possibly destructive. One look towards his brother assured him that Mycroft was thinking the same.

"What are you doing here? Of course I was going to inform you but-" Mycroft rubbed his face with his other hand.

"I am currently in a meeting so please be-"  the person on thr other end aaid something to make Mycroft's eye widen and send a distressed look towards his family.

"Absolutely not. I am fully capable of def-"

Sherlock was enjoying this one-sided conversation. It would be more entertaining if he could hear the other end though. Mummy looked positively livid being put second to Mycroft's work.

"This is not a trial. I don't need som-"

Something in Mycroft's eyes shifted. It was like he was doused with ice cold water. He sighed before covering his eyes with his free hand. He was too exhausted to argue with the person whose name he associated as being  _beyond unreasonable._

"This is my office. At least give me two minutes before you come barreling down here. And do tell Anthea that she is not fired and to clear today's and tomorrow's schedule."

Mycroft muttered before lowering the phone. He took a deep breath, his head was covered by his hands. Who cares about weaknesses, this is family. He gathered his words as he began to prepare to watch in all essence, a trainwreck.

"Who was that?" Sherlock feigned ignorance and Mycroft ignored him. He sighed before raising his head but refusing to meet the glares of his parents.

"In exactly seventy-eight seconds, this office would hold what would most likely be a terrible family reunion. I would suggest a change in venue but you would all be too busy yelling at each other to notice me." He ignored the confused looks his parents were giving him and continued speaking. "While this office is sound proof I do hope you try to keep it down. Brother-dear do move away from the door, our dear uncle does like to be dramatic."

"Rudi is coming here?" Siger asked.

"The nerve of him-" Violet started but couldn't finish as everything is sinking down.

"This is getting rather interesting." Sherlock smirked as he moved towards his brother's desk, dragging the chair his father previously occupied so he could sit beside Mycroft. It's a front row seat and he is not missing any of the juicy bits.

"This is making my head hurt." Mycroft mumbled. He silently counted down to himself.

_Five_

_Four_

_Three_

_Two-_

The door opened violently only to be closed with a slam. A man with gray hair in a three piece suit began glaring daggers at the owner of the office.

"You have a lot of explaining to do, Mycroft."

"This is not your office anymore, Uncle Rudi. Please refrain from slamming objects-"

_"How did Sherrinford become so chaotic? How did Eurus escape?"_

Mycroft was about to speak when a loud slap resounded. It was all too quiet in the office before Violet Holmes began attacking her brother verbally.

"You! How dare you keep my child away from us? I trusted you."

"Violet, sister, it was for the best. She was a danger to everyone and herself." Rudi rubbed his stinging cheek. He didn't anticipate that his sister would slap him this early in the confrontation.

"She was just a child."

"A child that has a deep psychological problem." He sighed deeply as though he was explaining everything to an infant. Violet sputtered as she tried to get the propwer words.

"And locking her up was your choice?" Sherlock didn't know his mother could reach that vocal range. 

"She nearly killed Sherlock and everyone of you, if you didn't smell the smoke-"

"It was an accident!" She yelled.

"Was it?" Rudi's voice was sharp and his eyes were sharper. The silly cross-dressing uncle Sherlock remembered was gone and in his place was Mycroft's mentor and sole keeper of secrets besides his brother. He suddenly saw Mycroft in another light. Just how dark and deep were the secrets that he keep?

"Are you honestly telling me that what happened to Victor was an accident? For Godsake, she's a genius! Did she accidentally convince Victor to go drown in a well?"

Sherlock's head whipped to his brother. Did he..?

"Victor's body was never fou-" Siger begun.  
Rudi glanced at Mycroft as the latter winced. "Wasn't it?" Rudi's voice was dripping with sarcasm.

"His body was in the well several kilometers away. Sherlock has found his remains after what happened in Sherrinford." Mycroft met his father's eyes.

"You knew this and you never told us? The Trevors?" His father asked. He couldn'y believe how his son could keep this information for years.

Mycroft bit his lip before replying. "It was for the best." 

Lately his answers consisted of those five words and each time he spoke them he believed them a little less. He avoided his brother's accusing eyes and their parent's ever present disappointment.

"How could you do that? Have you no heart left in you? Just imagine his family's pain-"

"Pain that was caused because Eurus-" The elder man growled.

Violet's voice raised once again. "Eurus did nothing wrong!" His sister turned to his nephew. "Why didn't you tell us, Mycroft?" 

**_'Because you wouldn't like what I had to tell you. It would have hurt you. It was for the best.'_ **

"I- I thought that-" The man couldn't look her in the eyes.

 **"It was for the best."** Sherlock mumbled in underdtanding as his mother's eyes were filled once again with rage.

"Whatever she was before and whatever she is now, she is our daughter." Siger repeated himself.

"I will not allow any civilian to go to that island. I know that look in your eye, Siger. You cannot see her." Rudi glared at Siger.

"That is no longer your call to make." Mycroft whispered. 

"Surely after what happened-" Rudi looked at his nephew incredously. "Mycroft you can't be considering this. This is madness."

"This is their right. Eurus has retreated deep into her own mind again, what's the worse thing she could do?" Mycroft met his uncle's eyes. Maybe it was time for him to stop thinking about what was best for everyone. His judgement isn't as good as he thought it was. He needs some space and he can't get it until everybody leaves him alone. And there's only one thing he could do now to make them leave him alone.

"I'll talk to my superiors about it. In the meantime, I do have other pressing matters to attend to." Mycroft's voice was cold and he stood up to open the door.

"Sit down." Sherlock grabbed his brother's arm, forcing him to sit back down. 

"Sherlock, I have meetings-"

"That you cancelled. Now, we are all going to discuss this like proper grown-ups. While seeing you all yell at each other brings such fond Christmas memories, I'd rather know what happened to make you intervene."

Rudi looked at Sherlock curiously. "A little overdone, but I'd give you props for _acting_ mature." Sherlock just raised an eyebrow at him.

"When I heard of little Victor's disappearance, I came right away. While I do not believe in such things as gut instincts, it did get me out of trouble a couple times." Rudi coughed once before continuing his tale.

"Now, when I heard of what happened, I checked Eurus and what I found alarmed me. I talked to your parents," he glanced at the Holmes parents, "And they were clueless as to why it happened. I talked to Mycroft and he offered me a bit more insight. Eurus was something else. She was dangerous. And while the words of an elder brother may seem biased and colored with jelousy, I had no doubt that he was really concerned. He is ever the big brother."  
He met Mycroft's hesitant eyes. The boy still craved the attention and praise from adults in his life. This is sad.  
"When she implied that Victor has drowned, Mycroft looked around the grounds every morning and every night for weeks. Don't look at me like that, I could hear you sneaking out." Rudi smirked at his nephew's look of alarm and bafflement.Thank goodness his days in the field were over, Mycroft was never meant to sneak about. He was never meant to be on the field.

Sherlock gazed at his brother curiously. There are still a lot of secrets he has to pry from him. He has to unlock his old memories. He has never realized this side of his brother existed.

"I was supposed to watch over them." Mycroft whispered. It was obvious he didn't mean to say it aloud, he was lost in his own mind.

"Yes, you were." 

The detective's head was swimming. Mycroft cared so much, it was clashing with the Mycroft in his mind-palace.

"After the fire, I took her away to an institution."  
Violet met her brother's eyes questioningly. "She was supposed to stay there, Violet. But she burned it down to the ground and killed atleast twenty people. So we had to send her to Sherrinford. It was the only way to secure her. To make sure she and everyone around here were safe."

"Why didn't you let us know? We were her family! How could you keep that secret for so long?"

"How _did_ we keep the secret for so long?" Rudi scoffed as he gazed at Mycroft. "I haven't the foggiest idea, you really weren't that much of a liar, my boy."

"You were a great two-faced actor." Mycroft rolled his eyes at his uncle. There was obviously an inside joke to that comment that Sherlock really wanted to know about.

"Why was Mycroft allowed the information?" Sherlock asked his uncle but his eyes remained on his brother.

Rudi's eyes softened just barely. "He was too clever. He found out I lied and demanded I tell him. I warned him, I warned him that his family would hate him if they found out-" Rudi glared at Violet and Siger.

"Don't" Mycroft sighed. "Uncle Rudi, this isn't about me. Please drop it." Rudi clicked his tongue. 

"While there are some information I would never tell you about, all you need to know is that I also warned Mycroft about following in my footsteps. He didn't listen, the idiot. And here we are."

Sherlock processed the information. He wants more but he knows that his uncle is as stubborn as his brother, if not more.

"Why didn't you want me to find out about her sooner?"

Mycroft raised his head. "You weren't ready. The trauma you suffered after what happened was something I feared would only be worse if you were to remember. We all thought it best to keep her a secret from you."

"Till when? Were you even planning on telling me?"

"Sherlock, dear-" Violet begun.

"No mummy. Were you all even planning on telling me or did you hope I would never find out about her?" Sherlock raised his voice.

"Sherlock, try seeing this in our point of view." Mycroft begun, "A child has been traumatized by the death of his best friend and the destruction of his home. He was catatonic for almost two weeks and after he recovered he has re-written his memory" Mycroft met his brother's eyes. 

"I've grown up. Everything's different now-"

"Is it?" Mycroft's voice cut sharp. "How can I be sure that everything is different? How many times have you said that everything was different yet you turn back to your _bad habits."_

Sherlock closed his mouth as Mycroft's eyes pierced him. 

"Hmm, do you know about those _bad habits_?" Rudi smiled sweetly at the parents while Sherlock and Mycroft glared at him.

"Of course we know. Sherlock has dipped in the pond, but that was a brief period in his life and he's over that."

"Oh is he?" Rudi condenscendingly asked as his eyes turned sharp. Mycroft remembered the days his uncle took him to one of his meetings, he's seeing the master at work.

"Is he?" Siger wondered. 

"Are you?" Rudi turned his gaze to Sherlock.

"He is." Mycroft defended his brother before Sherlock could open his mouth. 

"And that brief stint with Culverton?"   
Mycroft cursed Uncle Rudi, why must he be so difficult? "That was different, _it was for a case._ " Sherlock swallowed past the lump in his throat. That rang a little close to home.

"And that justifies it, doesn't it?"

He thought that they already escaped that chamber filled with emotions and brain puzzles, why was unce Rudi doing this?

"We are not talking about my _bad habit_ , we're talking about Eurus and your _dirty little secret_." Sherlock growled. He secretly took a glance towards his brother, he's trying to compose himself. Mycroft was once again trying to hide behind his mask of ice only this time Sherlock knows what he needs to look for.

"Ah yes, the locking up what in all actuality is a criminal. The most dangerous person you will ever mee-"

"She's our child." The normally calm patriarch of the Holmes raised his voice at his brother in law.

"It doesn't change the fact that she killed a child and caused the death of twenty people. Let's not forget the events of Sherrinford." Rudi smiled at them sweetly as Violet drilled holes on his skull.

"She was just a child when Victor disappeared. You're locking her up could have made things worst, maybe she was just trying to get back home to her family. That's why you locked her up in that hell hole."

"This is precisely why we elected not to tell you, mother." Mycroft sighed.  "You wouldn't have understood. Sentiment-"  
 _"Sentiment!?"_  
"-has clouded your judgement. While I possibly have done more harm than good, you wouldn't have seen reason."  
Violet looked as if she wanted to slap her son. If Rudi wasn't in the way, she' have rushed there and slapped some sense into her boy.

"And where did your logic lead you, Mycroft? Letting logic alone dictate your actions lead us all this mess."

Rudi laughed suddenly. He was barking and Sherlock was suddenly concerned for the mental state of his uncle. "That's rich." Rudy went to wipe the non-existant tear in his eye.  
"I see you even have your parents fooled with that facade of yours. Just how many lies have you weaved after all those years?"

Rudi lost all humour as quickly as it appeared. "Uncle Rudy, we talked about this." Mycroft was resisting to physically haul his uncle out of his office.

"Let the fool speak, Mycroft." Violet gritted out, challenging her brother like they often did while they were children.

"Uncle Rudy please, I will call sucurity if you do not cease this foolishness." Mycroft warned though his words fell on deaf ears.

"What is it that you are trying so hard to hide, brother? Sherlock glanced at Mycroft. "Why do you not want Uncle Rudy to spill the truth, pure and simple?" Sherlock challenged him. 

"I want no more secrets in this family."

"Violet, sister dearest, with both your son's profession I'd doubt you'd ever get what you want." The retired official was enjoying pushing his sister's buttons. Just like old times.

"Mycroft, please. Just tell us the truth. Why did you keep Eurus' survival a secret to us? Why have you never let us seen her?" His father implored at him. Sherlock fixed his brother with a steady stare as Violet and Rudi looked away from their staring contest to glance in his direction. All eyes was on Mycroft and while he enjoyed the attention and the power he commanded in a room full of politicians, being in a room with his family was different.

" ** _It was for the best_**." He choked out as he winced.

"Sherlock has forgotten about her after being catatonic for roughly two weeks. You were fighting, everyone was yelling at eachother." Sherlock saw his brother's eyes glaze over as he recalled the memory. "When they first took her away, I thought everything would be alright. I fooled myself into thinking that whatever institution it was, it could help her. I was so naïve back then. You were inconsolable." Mycroft glanced at his mother, not able to maintain the briefest eye contact.  
"Uncle Rudi came and told you about Eurus' apparent death. It was a kindness, really. It was far better than you knowing what sh-"

"How many times do I have to repeat myself before you get it, Mycroft. Eurus is our daughter and no matter what happens, she is our daughter." 

Mycroft shut his mouth, not willing to defend himself from the onslaught of verbal abuse he'll get.

"This is exactly why I rushed here." Uncle Rudi stood a few feet in front of Mycroft's desk."For all your claims of being a genius and being the idiot with the heart, you really don't get it do you?" Rudi glared at both Mr. And Mrs. Holmes.

"Do you know why I insisted on barging into this little family meeting? I knew Mycroft would never defend himself against you. He would take everything you throw at him. Don' believe me? If you weren't too busy earlier you'd have noticed how he's been repeating himself. He's arguments are weak. This is coming from the man that stops wars with a raise of an eyebrow. You have literally turned the most powerful man in the country into a cowering mess! This is beyond pitiful." Rudi began pacing around bht still maintained his position in front of Mycroft.

"Why exactly do you think Mycroft is the way he is? You made him carry all those heavy responsibilities while he was just a child. He practically raised Sherlock. And while I do take some blame in taking him under my wing and confiding my secret with him, you don't have to be so rash with him. You don't even know what your dear sweet daughter made your boys do!"

"Don't." Mycroft said as he tried to get a grip. His heart was pumping really hard, where was the coldness of the Iceman when he needed it? He can't let his uncle continue on, he was wrong. Uncle Rudi is making a fatal mistake.

"You keep pointing your finger at Mycroft but have you wondered what might have happened if you listened to him? If you listened to him when he said that Eurus was planning something bad. Where were you when he needed help getting his junkie brother into rehab? Where were you in the aftermath of his first mission? You keep making him responsible of things you should have taken care of yoursel-"

"Enough!" Mycroft shouted as he stood up. Rage was in his eyes though it was not directed towards anyone but himself.

"It was never their fault! It was mine! _I_ should have paid more attention to Eurus, _I_ should have been clever enough to decipher her song. _I_ could have tried harder to get your attention. They couldn't have known about Sherlock's drug use, _I_ didn't want to worry them. I got him in to rehab and while he still resents me, at least he is alive. They found out about his drug habit when he was foolish enough to use during a family dinner, they couldn't have known." Mycroft was feeling the burning pain on the back of his eyes but he continued.  
"They _can't_ be blamed for all that happened just because of some mistakes they did in the past- _they couldn't have known_. Perfect parents are made by miserable children to grow up with what little hope they can manage and while our parents weren't perfect, they were good enough. You shouldn't blame them, they _didn't know any better._ " 

Sherlock was beginning to understand just how smart his uncle really is. 

" _It was my fault_. I should have watched them more carefully. I should have paid more attention, I sho-"   
The feverish feeling he has was beginning to dissapate and he is regaining to full function of his brain again. He glared at his uncle while the latter flashe him a smile.

"You bastard." Mycroft tiredly sank back down to his chair.

"I do love this part." He chuckled before he faced his sister and brother in law.  
"You see. This is the infamous Ice man being reduced to a feverish mess. That's the biggest difference between the two of us, while I could maintain the aloofness I have with my colleagues as I mingle with family, this boy can't. That's why I came here. The boy needs someone to defend him because while Mycroft Holmes could reduce a man to a shivering mess with his very presence, he can't for the life of him, defend his actions from the past to his family." Rudi sat down on a chair 

"I called you here to help me _fix_ the cracks, not to _shatter_ it to bloody pieces." Mycroft muttered as he held his head in his hands. 

"You'd have turned into an icicle if Uncle Rudi didn't come right now. I know you lovk your emotions away to cope with your problems." Sherlock laid a hand on Mycroft' shoulder in a rare form of brotherly compasaion.

"You were just a child yourself when everything happened. You always keep blaming yourself and now I see why." Sherlock met his brother's eyes. "You're not alone anymore, brother."

Rudi sighed. While this was good and sentimental, he is not one for love and affection. "After everything that has happened, the boy still defends you both. While none of us in this room is completely without blame, it is a little unfair to shirk all of it to your son."  
" _He couldn't have known better. He was just a child._ " He sighed before smiling manically at them.  
"Now let's talk about Sherrinford while we're all being sentimental."

His sister wanted the truth, she'll get it. Pure and simple.

 

**Author's Note:**

> I think some characters are ooc. I was interrupted a lot of times so it was hard to get the emotion of one scene to blend with the other. Still, I hoped you enjoy. Thanks for reading!


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